‘Owe them a lot.’ - James Husband reflects on first Doncaster Rovers stint and playing with ‘pure men’
James Husband played with some big personalities including Rob Jones, James Coppinger and Neil Sullivan during his first spell at the club
After leaving as a fresh-faced 20-year-old, James Husband is back at Doncaster Rovers and returns this time as one of the real senior figures in the dressing room.
The left-back, who boasts over 400 matches of Football League experience, made his first start since returning to the Club Doncaster Sports Village, during the team’s recent 3-1 EFL Trophy defeat to Huddersfield Town.
Husband captained the side on the night and got to share the field with three debutants from the academy in Lincoln Pawlak, Jonny Tomlinson and Alex Pavan - players who will hope to follow a similar trajectory to Husband by progressing from the academy into regular senior first team starters.
When asked about what he can bring to the Rovers dressing room, Husband said: “Experience, level-headedness, hopefully some standards that we need to meet to take us to that next level we need to get to. Hopefully, I'll do my talking kind of on the pitch and what's needed, really.”
Husband is a fine example of someone that’s come through the Rovers pathway and forged an impressive career in the game.
He made his debut during the 2011/12 campaign when the club dropped out of the Championship, featuring three times throughout that season, but really made his breakthrough a season later under Dean Saunders and later Brian Flynn when the club won the title in dramatic circumstances to secure an immediate return to the second-tier.
The Leeds-born defender, who featured 40 times across all competitions during that particular season, played alongside some big characters, including captain at the time Rob Jones, Andy Griffin, Chris Brown, Neil Sullivan and James Coppinger just to name a few.
Reflecting back on that season, he said: “There were a lot of men here when I was younger. I'd describe them as pure men. People like Rob Jones, Cops and all that kind of thing.
“Listen, I owe probably a lot of my career to them and they put me on a path where I am today and where I've been. I owe them a lot. So hopefully I can repay that favour to the young boys here.”
Husband is one of a few names that’s returned to Rovers in recent years. Grant McCann is in his second stint as manager, Alfie May returned to the club this summer, while Paul Green and James Coppinger, who both enjoyed incredible careers as players with the club, make up part of the coaching team.
When asked what makes people come back to Doncaster, Husband added: “The fan base, the place, the people around here. It's just a really, really good club. And I've been at a few now and I must say that this place really does give me that feel of home.A feel of warmth when I'm here. I enjoy being here every day. It's like a small family really.It's really enjoyable.”